Dont forget the 'magic #7' password hack
Did your Google passwords just suddenly vanish in thin air recently? Yours and 15 million others may have done just that. The last company that anyone might think would lose a password, apparently did.
And the incident reportedly caught Google completely unaware of this issue until a user posted a comment on the Google Chrome Help message board. Untamedornithoid pointed out that when they tried to use their Google Password Manager, all their passwords were there, but the moment they exited out and went back in, the passwords had disappeared. Untamedornithoid explained that they had reset Chrome, restarted their computer, etc., but to no avail.
Without Untamedornithoid, who knows how bad this wouldve become, but a Chrome Product Managerat Google saw the post they reacted quickly. Hey all, thanks for taking the time to help bring this to our attention. Our team has investigated these reports and determined the cause of this behavior, the team wrote.
A little more than 17 hours after the incident was first reported, Google said it had found and repaired the problem in a version of its Windows Chrome Browser.
We apologize for the inconvenience this service disruption/outage may have caused. We would like to provide some information about this incident below. Please note, this information is based on our best knowledge at the time of posting and is subject to change as our investigation continues, the companys support team wrote.
If you have experienced an impact outside of what is listed, please reach out to Google Workspace Support using the help article https://support.google.com/a/answer/1047213.
You should also think about where you keep your passwords
This could happen as easily to an Apple Safari, a Firefox, or a Bing user just as easily as it did with Chrome users. But, because passwords in the wrong hands could upend our lives, maybe we should rethink how we keep them.
Since this was a Google Passwords Manager-related issue, if you use that service, make sure you download a copy of your passwords. Just go to Settings in Chrome or Android, and then select Passwords. Then, select "Export passwords." You can also export passwords in Settings on passwords.google.com.
You may also want to invest yes, saving your password-driven butt costs money in a password platform. From all that ConsumerAffairs has read, password managers are still the odds-on favorite for protecting your passwords. Some popular and highly-regarded password managers include:
If you really want to keep all your passwords safe, you should add a few more layers, too:
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Enable two-factor authentication (2FA)
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Regularly update your browser, and
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Use strong, unique passwords and, maybe, try this password hack.
Whatever you do, dont use the same password over multiple sites. If you do, youre setting yourself up for trouble because if a hacker steals that password, their systems can try and apply that password to other sites and theyll ruin your lives even more.
Photo Credit: Consumer Affairs News Department Images
Posted: 2024-07-29 11:05:41
